President Scott Kenworthy opened the meeting and reported that all recent ASEC financial and administrative issues have been resolved, thanks to vice president Eugene Clay. Clay thanked Kenworthy for three great years as president and led the remainder of the meeting, assuming his new role as president. Clay reported that ASEC was incorporated in May 2018 in the state of Arizona. An ASEC bank account has been set up in Arizona, and treasurer Chris Johnson deposited all received checks. Clay also submitted the ASEC application for tax-exempt status.

The annual meeting minutes of the 2017 meeting were seconded and approved with minor corrections (MSP). Clay announced that annual dues were waived for 2018; dues received will be applied to 2019. Plans are underway to open a PayPal account and install a button on the ASEC website, allowing payment of dues by credit card or bank transfer.

All were encouraged to attend the upcoming 8th biennial ASEC conference, February 21-23, 2019, in Tempe, Arizona. The call for participants has been distributed to members, who have been invited to submit paper proposals with abstracts to ASEC secretary Heather Bailey. The conference will commemorate the millennial anniversary of the enthronement of the Eastern Christian ruler Prince Iaroslav the Wise. The conference program will include an optional visit to St. Anthony’s Greek Orthodox Monastery in Florence, located one hour from Phoenix. Thomas Bremer will speak on Ukraine for the keynote address. No registration fee will be charged for the 2019 conference. Registration will be conducted on the Eventbrite web platform. Additional conference information is posted on the ASEC website. A block of rooms has been reserved at the Holiday Inn Express for about $125 per room per night—other hotel options are available. Clay will send out more information.

Clay and Russ Martin will edit the 2015 ASEC conference proceedings for publication in Canadian-American Slavic Studies.

Chris Johnson will not continue to serve as treasurer. The ASEC bank account continues to total approximately 8500 dollars in the Arizona account. Fees have been spent during the transition, including a $275 fee to apply for tax exempt status.

The nominating committee proposed Nadia Kizenko as vice president/president-elect. This motion was seconded and passed (MSP). Heather Bailey was nominated as secretary (MSP).

Alice Sullivan (not present) has agreed to serve as newsletter secretary. Charles Arndt was thanked for five years of service and the editing of eight issues of the newsletter. Sullivan had requested feedback and suggestions, so discussion led to a consensus of this timeline:
• March 1 and September 1 requests for newsletter submissions
• April 1 and October 1 deadlines for newsletter submissions
• May 1 and November 1 distribution of newsletter

Also, a three year term for the newsletter editor was recommended.

Olga Tsapina proposed that ASEC use Twitter for publicity; she volunteered to coordinate this activity.

Chris Johnson will not serve another term as treasurer but can continue until a replacement is found. Roy Robson was nominated to serve as treasurer (MSP).

The ASEC constitution was affirmed by vote after a call for questions and recommendations (MSP).

The ASEEES 2019 convention in San Francisco was discussed. The event will follow a new schedule: Saturday-Tuesday, November 23-26. Members proposed coordination of panel “streams”—to avoid the scheduling of multiple panels during the same time slots. Members proposed one ASEC-sponsored panel on “Orthodoxy and Others,” to be coordinated by Clay. Panel organization can be discussed on the ASEC listserve.

Members discussed the idea of raising dues to 35 dollars a year. Positive feedback was received. Members also suggested the possibility of a two-year payment option and a lifetime membership option. Kizenko will investigate how other academic organizations offer these options.

Members discussed the ASEC article prize, including the future timing of the award. Members suggested a book prize, to increase publicity for our field of study, and increase organization membership.

Vera Shevzov announced the new Journal of Orthodox Studies and encouraged the submission of articles. The Journal will not be able to publish complete ASEC conference proceedings, but thematic issues are a possibility.

The new Fordham University fellowships have been announced via the ASEC listserve.

Northern Illinois University Press will soon be affiliated with Cornell University Press. The editorial board will continue as before, and the Orthodox series will continue, with the same graphic designer.

The new International Orthodox Theological Association has invited ASEC to participate in its upcoming conference as an affiliated association. Member discussion concluded that ASEC should wait to take this step due to the substantial payment required. However, in the future this step could attract more participation from abroad.

The meeting was adjourned.

Present:
Charles Arndt
J. Eugene Clay
Heather Coleman
Mark Elliott
Aileen Friesen
M.A. Johnson
Scott Kenworthy
Nadia Kizenko
Scott Lingenfelter
Matt Miller
Roy Robson
Alan Smith
Vera Shevzov
Jenn Spock 
Olga Tsapina
Catherine Wanner

Minutes taken by Matt Miller, as requested by secretary Heather Bailey